


The Mayberry Wolfman

by Jw_sh



Category: The Andy Griffith Show
Genre: Werewolf
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:46:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22727116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jw_sh/pseuds/Jw_sh
Comments: 4
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

Sheriff Andy Taylor was just getting cleaned up to leave the station when a frantic man barged into the building. "Are you Sheriff Taylor?!" he exclaimed. "Why yes, and who are you? What's going on?" Andy stood to guide the man to a seat, he looked as if he was going to pass out. He was pale and had drips of sweat sliding down his face. "I need your help sir, my son.... my son I can't find him! It's not like him to wander off and I can't, I just don't know what to do!" He sputtered out. "Hold on there partner, slow down. Now take a deep breath and say that again. Let's start with your name." Andy's voice seemed to calm the man down enough to set his mind straight. "My name is Jim Kyle. I'm from outta town, my son and I were just on a little fishing trip. My grandparents lived here in Mayberry, so I know all the good spots, I wanted to share the experience with my son. He's only 5 years old sir, I went back to the truck to get another pole. I heard him scream. I ran as fast as I could back to the fishing spot, and he was gone! I searched and searched for him. I... I fear he may be...oh what am I going to say to Sarah." Mr. Kyle sobbed. Andy frowned and took a deep breath. He patted the man's shoulder and handed him a box of tissues. Andy went to the phone and told the operator to get Barney down there as quick as possible. As they waited for Barney, Andy asked Mr. Kyle some more questions. He determined that the boy was somewhere in the Brown County Nature Preserve, and he'd been missing for about 5 hours. The Preserve is a large forested area, at least 50 square miles, with a slow flowing creek cutting it right down the middle. It was just getting dark when Barney walked in. He saw the sobbing man and Andy's grim expression. "What's going on, Andy?" Andy stood and grabbed his coat. "We've got a missing boy out on the preserve. Mr. Kyle is going to stay here, you and I are going to start searching." Mr. Kyle started to object, but was cut short. "Now Jim, you stay here and get some rest. We can't be worrying about you and looking for little Conner. We will ring you with updates." Andy hardly ever uses his 'sheriff voice', but he used it then. The man sighed and nodded his head. "Thank you Sheriff." Andy gave the man a long look, then turned and grabbed Barney's arm. "Alright Barn, let's go." They both got into the sheriff's car and took off down the highway. 


	2. Chapter 2

Barney picked up an abandoned fishing pole and shook his head. "How are we going to find the boy by ourselves any how?" Andy stood from where he was crouching by the edge of the woods. "Well, Jim thinks the boy ran off and just got lost. I'm not convinced. Come look at this, what do you see?" Barney stalked over and looked at where Andy was pointing. About five feet ahead of them was a shredded piece of clothing. Blood was stained on the edges. Barney and Andy exchanged looks of concern. "I don't have a good feeling about this..." Barney said as he looked over his shoulder. He felt like he was being watched. "I'm going to call the Highway Patrol. We need bodies out here searching." Andy walked over to his car and radioed for reinforcements. When all was settled, Andy and Barney each grabbed a rifle and a light, the search began. The sun sank lower and lower as they followed the creek through the woods. The feeling of being watched never left Barney, but being next to Andy calmed his nerves. Andy was concentrated and focused, no sign of fear shown on his face. The moon crept up from the horizon and shined it's cool light on the forest floor. Crickets and frogs croaked their night song along with the flashing lightening bugs. Other than the task at hand, Andy thought it was a beautiful summer night. They stopped after a while to rest. Andy didn't know how far they'd gone, but they haven't seen anymore signs of the boy. As they sat in silence, Barney seemed to tense. Andy frowned at him, "Are you scared, Barney?" The deputy jumped at the question. "No no... I just can't shake the feeling that we are being followed, or watched." Andy chuckled and shook his head. "Barney, there is nothing out here to be afraid of! It's just you and I, and a scared little boy somewhere out there." Andy suddenly got stoic and stared off into the darkness. "I can't even imagine how I'd feel if it were Opey out there, lost and alone." He turned and looked at Barney. "We have to find him Barn." Barney nodded in agreement and glanced away. He didn't have kids of his own, but they all have come to love and adore little Opey. The feeling was mutual.


	3. Chapter 3

Both of the men trudged on, now miles away from their patrol car. No other words were exchanged, but Barney was growing tired. He wiped sweat off his forehead, and stumbled on an exposed root. Andy turned around and steadied Barney. "You alright?" Barney nodded and leaned up against a tree. Andy stood and looked around. The search was becoming less and less hopeful. He sighed and glanced at the sky, the moon was fully up now. "Let's head back and regroup, the highway boys are probably close." The tired deputy nodded and turned to head back the way they came. He looked up from the ground and he froze. Across the creek were a bright pair of eyes, watching their every move. With wide eyes and a loud gasp, he pointed the shape out to Andy. "Now what in the world..." Andy never finished his sentence. A large, dark creature charged across the shallow creek towards them. Barney shook in fear and stumbled to get his rifle up. Andy already had his rifle ready to fire and only had the time to shoot one round. The ugly creature was suddenly upon them, its large sharp teeth gleaming in the moon light. It's features resembled a large canine, with tall pointy ears and long gangly legs. Its tail swept the ground. It crashed onto Andy and snapped his rifle with its jaws. The creature raked its claws down the sheriff's torso and bit down on his thigh. He let out a scream of pain and tried to reach for his pistol. His whole body shook as the large canine bit down even harder and started to drag him onto the water. Andy was panicking and couldn't get the gun out of his holster. Fear took over and he yelled for help. He suddenly heard a round of shots ring out. The creature yelped in pain and released its massive jaws. It staggered for a moment, and ran into the woods leaving a long blood trail. Andy's chest heaved, the adrenaline still pumped through his veins. "Andy! Andy are you alright??" Barney ran over and dropped the still warm rifle. He knelt down next to the sheriff. He saw the blood coming from his leg and stuck his hand over he deep wounds. He had to stop the bleeding. Barney saw the gaping wounds on Andy's torso and had to calm himself. He can't panic now, Andy's life depended on it. "Is it... is it gone?" Andy gasped in pain. Barney nodded his head, still holding pressure on the wounds. "Andy we need to get back to the car. You need a hospital!" Barney grabbed the man's arm and started to help him up. They stumbled back to the trail that would lead them back to the patrol car. Andy had lost a lot of blood, and he leaned more and more on Barney. As they reached the clearing where they began, Andy stumbled and fell, unable to get up, he was unconscious. Barney heard voices ahead and called out for help. Patrol officers came crashing through the weeds. They saw the Sheriff unconscious and helped carry him to a car. The state officers stayed back to continue the search, while one officer and Barney drove Andy to the county hospital. Andy never regained consciousness during the drive. Upon arrival he was immediately taken into the ER. Barney and the other officer paced the waiting room. At one point, Barney called Aunt Bee and let her know what was going on. She was upset and worried for Andy, but remained strong. He continued to pace. Barney caught a glimpse of himself in a mirror and yelped at the sight. He was sweaty, dirty, and covered in Andy's blood. Barney sat down and tried to stay calm. After what seemed like an eternity, a nurse came out and told Barney that the Sheriff was stable and resting. Barney followed the nurse back through a long hallway and into a room. Andy was in there, laying on a bed. Barney sighed with relief, his partner was looking better already. He sat next to the bed and a patted Andy's arm "You rest up now, we need you in this town." Barney said softly. He could see the extensive amount of bandages wrapped around his friend's torso. He could only imagine the amount of stitches he had. Barney sat at Andy's bedside in deep thought, and he eventually fell asleep. He needed the rest too. 


	4. Chapter 4

"Sugar or milk?" A soft voice asked. "Uh, no thank you ma'am. I like my coffee black. But could I get an extra cup for him? Two scoops of sugar and a little bit of milk please. That's good, thank you ma'am." Andy stirred in his hospital bed to the smell of coffee and quiet voices. His ears rang just a little, and his chest felt tight. "Andy? Are you awake?" He heard Barney whisper. "I am now..." he groaned without opening his eyes. "I got you some coffee, just how you like it! Two scoops of sugar and a dash of milk." He said eagerly. Andy couldn't help but chuckle. His deputy knew him well. He opened his eyes and had to squint, the lights in the room were bright. After his eyes adjusted, he looked over at Barney and gasped. "Barn, you look terrible!" He said. Barney looked down at his uniform and scoffed. "Well it's your blood Andy, don't go blaming me!" Andy struggled to sit up. "Easy mister! Don't be tearing any stitches now..." Barney warned. Andy could hear the concern in his friends voice. With a sharp inhale, he sat up and faced the deputy. He took the cup of coffee very carefully and took a sip. "Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?" Andy asked. Barney shook his head, "No injuries, I'm fine. Little tired, that's all. But what about you? How do you feel?" Andy looked down at his torso where bandages wrapped his stomach. He moved the blankets aside and saw even more bandages on his right leg. "I'm glad I'm alive, honestly. A little sore, but heck who wouldn't be." He chuckled. On a more serious note, Andy looked up at Barney and set his hand on Barney's shoulder. "I wanted to thank you. I was terrified last night, I couldn't get my hands to work and grab my pistol. You saved my life Barn, I wanted you to know that." Barney's faced flushed and he squirmed in his seat. "Oh Andy, I know you would've done the same for me..." Andy smiled and took another sip of coffee. "Well, there's good news I've been meaning to tell ya..." Barney said after a moment. "After your, um...incident...." The deputy glanced down at his lap, seemingly uncomfortable. "...after we left, the state officers continued searching. They found Mr. Kyle's boy up in a tree about a quarter mile south of the fishing hole. They boy was unharmed, other than a few bumps and scratches. The kid said he saw a snake and ran, he's horribly afraid of snakes and climbed the tree to get away. He never heard Mr. Kyle calling for him, they were reunited down at the station." Andy sat back with a sigh. "I'm glad he was found alive and well." He paused in deep thought. Barney sat and waited, he knew Andy was thinking of what to say next. "Barney, what happened last night? What was that thing? My mind is telling me it had to be a bear, but that's not what I saw..." He turned his head to look Barney in the eyes, but he was staring at his lap. "It's going to sound crazy, but it looked like a giant coyote or dog, something I've never seen before. Heck, even you said there was nothing to be afraid of out in those woods. I guess we were wrong." Barney glanced up at the bandages. For some reason, he felt guilty for the Sheriff's injuries. Andy sighed again and patted Barney's leg, as if he could read his friends mind. "Well, I'm getting awfully tired again, I think I'll try to get some rest. You go on home and get cleaned up. We'll get ya another uniform next week, don't worry about trying to clean that one up." Barney stood and stretched. As he turned to leave, Andy spoke up. "You get some rest now too, Barney." He smiled and left the room.


	5. Chapter 5

Andy was released from the hospital early the next morning. The doctor warned him to take it easy, and get plenty of rest. Andy was thankful, he was beginning to get stir crazy in the hospital room. He decided desk duty was all he could manage, so that's what he did. Barney took care of anything that required leaving the station, which he genuinely enjoyed. Mayberry residents heard all about Sheriff Taylor's "bear attack", and it was the talk of the town. Andy got plenty of visitors throughout the day, but as the weeks went on they slowly stopped coming in. Andy hated to admit it, but he was relieved by the loss of visitors. He didn't like being the center of attention, and he didn't like thinking back to that night. Andy was still very unnerved by the whole thought of almost dying. His stitches eventually came out, leaving him with fresh scars across his midsection and legs. That evening, he stood in front of the bathroom mirror looking at the scars. Just looking at them brought back the pain they inflicted, the fear. Opey knocked on the locked door, startling Andy out of his thoughts. "Are you in there Pa?" he asked quietly. "Yes son, I'll be out in a minute to tuck you in." Andy took one last look at himself and put his shirt back on. Opey was in bed waiting for his Pa with a smile. He was all snuggled under the blankets, with a book in one hand. "Will you read to me? Just for a while?" Opey asked innocently. Andy nodded and sat down on the bed. The book was a chilling mystery story, but by chapter two little Opey was fast asleep. Andy marked their spot, tucked Opey in, and kissed him goodnight. He shut off the lamp and went to his room to lay down as well. He was exhausted and fell asleep quickly. 

The next morning, Andy woke up from a nightmare in a cold sweat. The dream was quickly fading, but his heart raced. He sat up and calmed himself down. "It was just a dream, just a dream...." He whispered to himself. He focused on his breathing, and eventually calmed down. It was close to 5:30am at that point, so he decided to get up and start the day. Aunt Bee was up and getting breakfast started when Andy came downstairs, showered and dressed. "Good morning, Andy! Did you sleep well dear?" She asked as she poured him a cup of coffee. "Morning..." he mumbled. He felt very on edge for some reason, he hasn't had issues with anxiety for years. A bowl of grits was placed in front of him, along with the morning paper. Bee always seemed to know when to push things and when to leave him be. He started to read the paper, but found he couldn't get passed the first paragraph. His eyes were reading, but his mind was else where. With a sigh he set the paper down, took one last sip of coffee, and left for work. Andy thought work would help calm his seemingly fried nerves, but it didn't help either. By lunchtime, the only thing that took the edge off his mind was pacing. He paced up and down the jail block, his mind a cluster of conflicting thoughts and emotions. Barney took notice. He hasn't been this upset since his wife passed many years ago. Around 5 in the evening, Barney got fed up with the unusual antics of his friend, so he confronted Andy. "Andy, what has gotten into you? You've been pacing like a crazy man all day! Can't you just sit for a moment?" Andy barely glanced at Barney. The deputy watched him pace the isle a few more times. He finally grabbed Andy's arm and forced him to stop, he was now very concerned. Andy always listened, it's not like him to ignore Barney. "Are you okay Andy? You know if something's bothering you, you can tell me..." Andy stopped for a moment. "I don't know what's wrong Barn, I have a bad feeling in my gut. I can't kick this feeling that something's going to happen, like I'm on the edge of cliff about to jump. I don't know....It doesn't make sense." Barney didn't know what to say, he's never seen Andy this way before. He looked physically ill, he was pale and had small beads of sweat on his forehead. He grabbed Andy on his arm again, and this time didn't let go. He instantly noticed how hot his skin was, even through the uniform. "Andy, let's go get you checked out. You said yourself you're not feeling right." The Sheriff turned towards Barney and nodded. "Okay, it's not a bad idea. I think you'd better drive." Barney let go of his arm and noticed Andy's hands were trembling. He got a few steps from the door and with a small pained gasp he stumbled to the floor. His vision blurred and he felt like he was going to get sick. "Andy! Andy come on we've got to get you to the hospital!" Barney pleaded. Andy heard the deputy calling to him, but it was like he was underwater. His body hurt all over, his muscles cramped in his arms and legs. Barney helped him up and they stumbled out to the patrol car. He layed Andy down in the back seat and jumped up front. Barney sped out of town, and up the highway towards the county hospital. Andy's whole body shuttered and he couldn't help but moan in discomfort. "Barn stop, please just pull over..." he called out breathlessly. Barney started to object, but Andy persisted. "Please Barn, I just need some fresh air, that's all." Barney reluctantly pulled over onto the side of the road. The sun had just sunk under the horizon, and the full moon started it's slow ascent into the night. The thick woods were covered in shadows. Barney put the car in park and went to the back to help Andy out. He looked worse than before. Just as Barney was thinking about getting him back into the car, Andy doubled over and moaned in pain. His breathing was heavy, and his body was hot to the touch. "Andy, this was a bad idea, come on we have to go." Barney tried to pull Andy back to the car, but he resisted. Suddenly, Andy fell to the ground. Barney couldn't understand what was happening, or what he was witnessing. Andy's body shifted and shook. His bones repositioned, and dark hair sprouted all over his body. Claws grew out of his fingers as his hands and feet shortened into thick paws. Andy's teeth grew sharp, and a snout formed on his face. His clothes tore apart as a new body took shape. Barney watched as his friend turned into a large, furry beast. Andy's groans turned to animalistic snarls. It felt like an eternity, but in actuality was only mere seconds. The beast seemed to go unconscious once the shuttering stopped, its breathing also slowed. Barney looked at the motionless creature with disbelief. He stepped carefully towards it. The canine had dark brown fur, long legs, and a long tail. He stared at the animal. Barney eventually reached out and nudged his flank. "... Andy?" He whispered. Nothing happened. He tried again, this time a little louder. "Andy, wake up!" A deep sigh came from Andy's muzzle. He slowly opened his eyes. He sat up carefully, grunting in effort. He noticed Barney's spooked expression, and how he stumbled backwards. He shook his head and tried to figure out where he was. "Barney, where are we?" He asked. Barney jumped at the question. "What's gotten into you Barn?" Barney was wide-eyed. "I heard you! I heard you in my head!" He exclaimed. Andy frowned in confusion. _What is he going on about?_ He wondered. Andy stood and stretched, his muscles still felt tight. He felt much better though, the frightening sensation of extreme anxiety was gone. "Let's go Barn. I don't know where we are, but I don't exactly feel like camping out on the side of the road." Barney stood up quickly with his hands stretched out towards Andy. "Andy, you don't understand, we can't go back into town. You're not yourself..." Andy huffed at the remark and continued towards the patrol car. He suddenly stopped when he saw something he wasn't expecting in the reflection of the car. He saw a coyote, no a _wolf_ in the reflection. He jumped back in surprise. Andy looked beside him, there was nothing there. He looked back at the reflection, and noticed it moved when he did. The revelation of what he was seeing finally came to him. Andy looked down at his feet and yelped in astonishment. He had paws! He turned and looked over his shoulder, he saw a fluffy brown coat with a long tail. Barney spoke up, "Now calm down Andy, we'll figure this out..." Andy instinctively let a out a small whine. "This has to be a dream, this isn't real Barn." "I can't believe it either, but here we are. You were acting weird all day, and you almost passed out at the station. We were on our way to the hospital, when you asked to pull over. You got out and, and now you're that!" Barney explained. "What's left of your clothes are over here." Barney pointed to the pile of clothes he was wearing. Andy's ears wear pinned to his head in apparent distress. He didn't know what to think. Barney picked up the shredded clothes and tossed them into the trunk. "Come on Andy, we'll go back to my house. We can figure what to do next there." He opened the passenger door of the car. Andy, still overwhelmed with the recent discoveries of his now animal body, jumped in without thought. He awkwardly sat in the front seat. Barney got in without another word and started the drive home. 


End file.
